"You'll think me mad," said the woman. "But to me, robin's are the bringers of bad news." No I didn't think her mad but I needed to know more.
"One appeared at my bedroom window and a few minutes later the phone rang and it was my brother calling to say Mum had just passed away. Then two year's later, I saw a robin at the kitchen window. The phone rang and I just knew someone else close to me had died. I was right."
I asked if she now associated robins with bad news. "Oh no," she chuckled. "I love 'em. And, those that have gone are at peace with God."
Five minutes later another woman approached us as we showed off the birds in Dulwich Park. "I can't stand birds," she declared. "Their flapping wings scare me, I can't go near them." We chatted and she came close to looking through the telescope. I hope she left feeling a little less scared.
Aren't birds brilliant! That's the name of our UK wide initiative to showcase birds where they gather in public spaces and where we share the spectacle and wonder of their lives with passers-by. It's simple and effective. People of all ages have a bird story to share and know more about birds than they realise. All deny being birdwatchers and seem to want to distance themselves from that title. We are a nation of birdwatchers. Whether you stare at a pigeon in an idle moment, observe swifts darting overhead or smile at the swans in the park. We watch birds everytime we look out the window and our eyes are caught by movement. It's invariably a relaxing expeience.
After enjoying the daily routine of the ducks, geese and coots at Dulwich I returned home to watch TV pictures beamed back to Earth from Mars. A barren, dusty landscape apparently devoid of song or movement. It was reminiscent of scenes from dustbowl America after industrial agriculture ripped all the life out of the soil. A scary reminder of our own planet's mortality.
That's reason enough to stand-up and say proudly and loudly, I am a birdwatcher. I'm watching the birds to see if they are surviving as we put more and more of a strain on our planet. I immediately wanted to go out recruit new RSPB members to fund more conservation work, to pause and admire the wildlife surviving around me and to take my children in to the garden to lie on the grass and laugh. It's true that a Mars a day helps you work, rest and play.
This coming weekend I'll be at Southwark's Aylesbury Estate, helping to transform Surrey Square gardens in to a wildlife haven. Access to spaces like this is crucial in urban areas. The Victorians recognised this and created places like Victoria Park for the well-being of the poor eastenders. It's as vital to the physical and mental health of eastenders today as it was when it was created in 1842. Surrey Square is hardly a comparison but as a small green oasis off the Old Kent Road, it is a resource to be cherished.
Anyone with access to a windowbox, balcony, garden or allotment can do more to bring wildlife in to their lives. Visit our free gardening pages for ideas and advice on making the most of the space you have. While you're online, click the links to vote on whether the EU should stick to its target of having 10% biofuels by 2020. Please support our campaign by voting NO. It sounds and feels counter intuitive but evidence has shown that increasing biofuels comes at the cost of a loss of agricultural land for food and with little or no reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. It was a well-intentioned bit of policy but science has luckily shown this to be a red herring for reducing emissions before it was too late. If you enjoyed that little taste of people power, visit our campaigns page to see what other simple actions you can undertake to help make this world better for us and other wildlife.
Finally, an update on our London peregrines, Misty, Bert and their three boys and one girl. They're all doing well and should be taking their first flights this week. It's a worrying time. Will they survive their first flights? Visit this blog again next week to find out how they get on.